I built a new headphone display at the shop. Coming in to fill some gaps are the Grado SR 225i and SR 325is headphones. The new Grado PS500 cans are in. Headphone amps from Heed, Musical Fidelity, Avenson Audio, Furutech and Graham Slee are available for audition.

Graham Slee call themselves a niche manufacturer in audio electronics equipment - a tiny company compared with the giants of hi-fi, but in their first 12 years of trading they've sold over 20,000 products all individually hand made and fully tested by just three engineers.

Their no-BS approach coupled with unceasing research has resulted in a product range that consistently puts the world of high end audio to shame. Not only can they beat high end performance but they do it at a price more people can afford.

I just placed my first order. I will be getting more offerings in over the next several months.

The busy elves at Rega have announced details of the new RP6 turntable. The RP6 features the new RB303 Tonearm, 16mm thick glass platter, machined metal sub platter and redesigned TT PSU power supply.
The plinth will be available in the same variety of gloss finishes as the outgoing P3/24 Turntable including Gloss Black, White, Red, Silver, Blue, Pink, Orange, Yellow and Green. I'm not sure of the price, probably a few hundred more than the P3-24. I am now taking orders! Get on the list! They should be shipping in a few weeks.

Susumu Sakuma was hot rodding idler drives while they were still getting tossed in dumpsters or selling for cheap in the US and UK. He was building with triodes before it was hip. It would be a hell of a pilgrimage to travel to his coffee house in Japan...

The Naim SuperUniti is in the house! Taking the Uniti line up a notch, The SuperNait got a facelift and now has all the flexability you need and the power you want. It's warming up now and smacking around the DeVore Nines nicely!

Also coming in next week are the Zu Soul Superfly 101db speakers. I can't wait to hook these up to my tube amps and watch em scream! 8 watts will make your ears bleed!!!

Not sure how long a phono cartridge lasts? At least a few years with average play. You'll hear it degrade so just trust your ears. The most popular cause of cartridge death is user error. I've seen it all. Dusting is a big one. Never dust your turntable without being very aware of the cantilever and dusting cloth. Children. One day a client came in hyperventilating. The neighbor kids somehow trashed his $3K Dynavector while his back was turned for a second. Your drunk ass self / friends. I saw a $800 cartridge scrapped this way. House Party? Cool. Just make it a House Rule that you are the only "DJ". Drinking? Use the cueing lever! If things get too out of hand it may be time to hit shuffle on the iPod.

I have cartridges from $50 - $ (only the 1% can afford) Some have replaceable styli, Some don't but offer a trade in amount towards a new one. There are also some that offer re-tipping services. As always, any cart bought here is installed free of charge.

Running a Hi-Fi shop in a 700 square foot space is like playing real life Tetris with speakers and components. Everything has it's place! I got rid of the Ikea monstrosity and moved records and speakers around. It really opened the space up. It was also a great opportunity to vacuum in places that haven't been touched for years. Next on the list is a listening station for headphones and computer audio.